Filmmakers Aideen O’Sullivan (On Trial) and Ross Whitaker (Saviours), are currently gathering accounts and stories from the people of Ireland about their experiences and memories of public phone boxes, which are almost obsolete due to mobile phone technology.

The Dublin duo are filming a 12 minute documentary for the Irish Film Board who have awarded €15,000 in funds for its creation. The documentary aims to highlight the often frequently forgotten function of the Irish phone box in our society today but, more importantly, in the past.

With many varied and eclectic tales including a Kerry family that never bothered to get a phone because there was one stationed outside the front of their house, to the memories of those that used to operate the switch board, to the man from rural Kerry that couldn’t understand how his son who was living in London could extend the lead from the phone box to his bedroom when he rang home.

Speaking to Ross the idea for the short originated from an article in a newspaper about Eircom slashing the number of public phones from 4,850 to 3,000. A couple of days later they saw the closing date for applications for the Irish Film Board’s short film entries and decided to apply.

What started off as a quirky conversation is now a documentary in the making which hopes to reflect a diverse cross section of Irish society. Aideen O’Sullivan and Ross Whitaker are producing, directing and shooting the documentary.

The documentary will be launching at the Cork film festival in November.

In the past two weeks the pair have amassed anecdotes from across the West of Ireland and are still looking for people’s stories. Anyone with phone box stories should contact Ross Whitaker at info@truefilms.tv, via phone on 0860816004 or by post at 7 St Johns Wood, Castle Ave, Dublin 3.